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Ambivalence. On Sacrifice in Philosophy, Society, and Religion

Published/Copyright: February 3, 2009
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Neue Zeitschrift für Systematische Theologie und Religionsphilosophie
From the journal Volume 50 Issue 3-4

SUMMARY

I have identified and briefly analyzed three examples of sacrificial logic in the intersection of politics and religion. My analysis, which is based on the texts of Girard, Kierkegaard, and Levinas, concerns (a) the heroic self-sacrifice of soldiers, (b) the religiously motivated sacrifice of the suicide bombers, and (c) the everyday sacrifice of the unborn in the silent rites of the clinic – all three characterized by cultural unease and ambivalence.

These examples may indicate why the European Society for Philosophy of Religion (ESPR) had chosen “Sacrifice” as topic for its conference in Oslo in August 2008: the questions have profound significance and wide bearing, thus opening up the field of philosophical discourse far beyond the traditional perspectives of Jewish-Christian thought.

ZUSAMMENFASSUNG

Anhand des Denkens von Girard, Kierkegaard und Levinas' werden hier drei aktuelle Beispiele der Logik des Opfers identifiziert und ihre komplexe Problemlage umrissen: Das heroische Selbst-Opfern des Soldaten, das religiös motivierte Opfer des Selbstmordbombers und das alltägliche Opfer der Ungeborenen im stillen Ritus der Kliniken – alle drei gekennzeichnet durch kulturelles Unbehagen und Ambivalenz.

Mit diesen Beispielen möchte ich zugleich deutlich machen warum die ESPR ihre 17. Konferenz in Oslo im August 2008 dem Thema Opfer gewidmet hat: Die Fragen treffen tief und gehen weit, und dabei öffnen sie das Feld der Religionsphilosophie weit über die traditionellen Perspektiven des jüdisch-christlichen Denkens hinaus.

Published Online: 2009-02-03
Published in Print: 2008-December

© Walter de Gruyter 2008

Articles in the same Issue

  1. Editorial
  2. Ambivalence. On Sacrifice in Philosophy, Society, and Religion
  3. The complex Nature of Religious Sacrifice in the Mahabharata, in the Bagavadgita, and in general. A Cross-cultural Comparison between Indian and Western Theories of Religious Sacrifice
  4. »Eph' hapax… «. Historische und systematische Aspekte des christlichen Opferbegriffs
  5. Love as Gift and Self-Sacrifice
  6. Kierkegaard, Love, and Sacrifice. Is There A Solution To Abraham's Dilemma?
  7. Justifying Sacrifice
  8. For God's sake: why Sacrifice? Mediating Reflections on Peter Jonkers and John Milbank
  9. Abraham and Sacrifice
  10. Sacrifice, Conflict, and the Foundation of Culture. A Response to Merold Westphal
  11. Zeitschriftenschau
  12. Inhaltsverzeichnis 2008
  13. Inhaltsverzeichnis 2008
https://doi.org/10.1515/NZST.2008.015

Articles in the same Issue

  1. Editorial
  2. Ambivalence. On Sacrifice in Philosophy, Society, and Religion
  3. The complex Nature of Religious Sacrifice in the Mahabharata, in the Bagavadgita, and in general. A Cross-cultural Comparison between Indian and Western Theories of Religious Sacrifice
  4. »Eph' hapax… «. Historische und systematische Aspekte des christlichen Opferbegriffs
  5. Love as Gift and Self-Sacrifice
  6. Kierkegaard, Love, and Sacrifice. Is There A Solution To Abraham's Dilemma?
  7. Justifying Sacrifice
  8. For God's sake: why Sacrifice? Mediating Reflections on Peter Jonkers and John Milbank
  9. Abraham and Sacrifice
  10. Sacrifice, Conflict, and the Foundation of Culture. A Response to Merold Westphal
  11. Zeitschriftenschau
  12. Inhaltsverzeichnis 2008
  13. Inhaltsverzeichnis 2008
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